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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. fine — all right
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. bark — to shout
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. capital — money
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fine — high quality
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. wake — a trail
  19. capital — a city
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. plane — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com